Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin said he would sell dozens of individual stocks once he’s confirmed as homeland security secretary, according to a signed ethics agreement published Wednesday by the Office of Government Ethics.
Mullin promised to divest from stocks including Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft, L3Harris, RTX, Nvidia and several dozen other companies, many of which have large government contracts.
Mullin’s stock portfolio — and the wealth its generated for him — sparked conflict-of-interest concerns in the leadup to his confirmation hearing Wednesday.
“If confirmed as the next U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, Senator Mullin will act to ensure full compliance with all ethics and conflict of interest rules,” a spokesperson for Mullin said in a statement to NOTUS.
Trending
The Department of Homeland Security referred NOTUS to Mullin’s Senate office.
Mullin is one of the richest members in the multimillionaire-packed Senate. His median net worth is around $45 million, according to a NOTUS analysis of annual financial disclosures. (Lawmakers are only required by law to report the value of their assets and liabilities in ranges, making it impossible to pinpoint a lawmaker’s exact net worth.)
His wealth has increased significantly since he was elected to the U.S. House in 2012 with a median net worth of $5.9 million.
Much of Mullin’s wealth comes from various personal businesses, including Mullin Plumbing, Mullin Properties and Mullin Realty. Mullin pledged to resign from these positions and others upon his confirmation.
Over the summer, NOTUS reported that Mullin twice violated a federal transparency and conflict-of-interest law when he failed to properly disclose millions of dollars worth of stock and bond trades.
Members of Congress are allowed to buy, trade and sell individual stocks, but they are required under the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act, or STOCK Act, to publicly report their trades within 45 days. There is an ongoing debate on Capitol Hill about whether members of Congress should be barred from owning stocks, since they often have access to business information before the general public and because corporations stand to make or lose money based on congressional decisions.
Mullin’s office acknowledged the late disclosures at the time and said that he uses “an independent, third-party operator firm that manages all stock portfolio investments on his behalf. He does not conduct nor inform trades. This independent firm reports bi-weekly with Senate Ethics to ensure compliance with federal law.”
President Donald Trump tapped Mullin, Oklahoma’s junior senator, earlier this month to replace Kristi Noem as secretary of homeland security. He appeared before the Senate Homeland Security Committee on Wednesday for a contentious hearing, during which Republican Sen. Rand Paul expressed reservations about advancing his nomination, citing his “anger issues.”
Mullin’s stock portfolio did not come up in the hearing.
Author
